Amir Carlos Damaso Vahidi Agassi (born December 12, 1979, in
Makati
Makati ( ), officially the City of Makati ( fil, Lungsod ng Makati), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines.
Makati is the financial center of the Philippines; it has the highest concentration ...
,
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
), popularly known as Carlos Agassi and simply Amir, is a
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
actor, rap artist, host, and model. He was launched as a member of
ABS-CBN
ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast broadcast network, network tha ...
's Star Circle (now
Star Magic
ABS-CBN Center for Communication Arts, Inc., trade name, doing business as Star Magic (formerly known as ABS-CBN Talent Center), is the Talent agency, talent agency owned by ABS-CBN Corporation based in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines t ...
) Batch 3 in 1993.
Career
Agassi is a member of
ABS-CBN
ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast broadcast network, network tha ...
's circle of homegrown talents named
Star Magic
ABS-CBN Center for Communication Arts, Inc., trade name, doing business as Star Magic (formerly known as ABS-CBN Talent Center), is the Talent agency, talent agency owned by ABS-CBN Corporation based in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines t ...
. He was part of a male group dubbed as "The Hunks
" together with
Piolo Pascual
Piolo Jose Nonato Pascual (, born January 12, 1977) is a Filipino film and television actor, singer, model, and producer.
Early life
Piolo Jose Nonato Pascual was born on January 12, 1977, in Ospital ng Maynila Medical Center located in Malate ...
,
Jericho Rosales
Jericho Vibar Rosales (; born September 21, 1979), also known as Echo, is a Filipino actor. He is currently a freelance actor.
Primarily a film and television actor, he is known by his stage name "Echo" cousin of Jefferson C. Rosales. He beg ...
,
Diether Ocampo
Diether Pascual Ocampo (born July 19, 1973) is a Filipino actor, singer, and model.
Background
Ocampo was born on July 19, 1973 in Aniban, Bacoor, Cavite, where he attended school. He attended De La Salle University-Dasmarinas. He is of German ...
, and
Bernard Palanca
Bernard Revilla Palanca Jr. (born December 3, 1976) is a Filipino host, film/television character actor, and product endorser.
Early life
His maternal grandfather, Armando Goyena (real name: José Revilla), was an actor as was his younger bro ...
. During his tenure as part of The Hunks, he has been a
primetime
Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
actor when he co-starred with
Claudine Barretto
Claudine Margaret Castelo Barretto (; born July 20, 1979) is a Filipino actress, singer, and entrepreneur.
Popularly dubbed as “''The'' ''Optimum Star''” by various media outlets, Barretto has won 3 FAMAS Award including 2 Best Actress w ...
in the hit teleserye ''
Sa Dulo ng Walang Hanggan'' which ran from 2001 to 2003.
Aside from acting, he had hosting stints in the variety show ''
ASAP'' and also hosted a
hidden camera
A hidden camera or spy camera is a camera used to photograph or record subjects, often people, without their knowledge. The camera may be considered "hidden" because it is not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another obje ...
practical joke
A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
entitled ''Victim'', patterned on America's ''
Punk'd
''Punk'd'' is an American hidden camera–practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003. It was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, with Kutcher serving as producer and host. It bears a resemblance to both the ...
''.
After an almost two-year hiatus from acting, Agassi returned on television via
ABS-CBN
ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast broadcast network, network tha ...
's ''
Agua Bendita
''Agua Bendita'' () is a 2010 Philippine
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* ...
'' in 2010 where he played as one of the primary antagonists.
In 2014, Agassi appeared in GMA Network's ''
Elemento
''Elemento'' () is a 2014 Philippine television docudrama horror anthology broadcast by GMA Network. It premiered on October 10, 2014 on the network's Telebabad line up. The show concluded on October 31, 2014 with a total of 4 episodes.
The ser ...
''.
Controversies
Agassi has been a victim of numerous death hoax claiming that he had died due to alleged
anabolic steroid
Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone (medication), testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related ...
abuse and that prior to his rumored death, Agassi had undergone
dialysis procedure with the reason being on a
kidney failure
Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...
. The rumors had been proven false by Agassi himself.
Agassi stated in an interview that his buff physique is a product of physical workout since the age of 16.
Given the moniker "The Amir of (Philippine) Rap", Agassi was met with criticism by the likes of veteran rappers Loonie, D-Coy of Madd Poets and Krazykyle of Rapskallion. He even filed a case against D-Coy and Krazykyle in 2006 and demanded the pulling of copies of the album ''United Freestyle v.2'' where the lyrics of songs "Right Now" (D-Coy) and "No Album Got Skills" (Krazykyle) contain the lines ''"Ang dapat sa'yo mag-disappear tulad ng showbiz na si Amir"'' and ''"I destroy emcees more than your eyes can see, don't battle me I'll make you look like Carlos Agassi"'' respectively. The case, however, was quietly settled. In response to criticism, he together with
Gloc-9
Aristotle Condenuevo Pollisco (born October 18, 1977), known professionally as Gloc-9, is a Filipino rapper, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as one of the best Filipino rappers of all-time, his fast-flowing vocal style has made him one of th ...
and Mitchell Silonga released a single entitled "Alay Ko" in 2009, a song about Agassi's thoughts on destructive criticisms.
Other ventures
Agassi went on hiatus from showbiz sometime in the mid 2000s to finish his degree in
Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...
at
De La Salle University
De La Salle University ( fil, Pamantasang De La Salle or Unibersidad ng De La Salle), also referred to as DLSU, De La Salle or La Salle, is a private university, private, Catholic Church, Catholic coeducational research university run by the I ...
. He also ventured into the restaurant business and opened Brasas, a Latin-American inspired restaurant in Metro Manila. Agassi also has his own recording studio called "Amir Carlos Agassi, Inc." where he releases his rap music and collaborates with other artists.
Personal life
Agassi's younger brother Michael is an actor and was married to actress
Cherry Lou.
His other brother
Aaron
According to Abrahamic religions, Aaron ''′aharon'', ar, هارون, Hārūn, Greek (Septuagint): Ἀαρών; often called Aaron the priest ()., group="note" ( or ; ''’Ahărōn'') was a prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of ...
is both an actor and singer.
Agassi was previously engaged to model and ''
Pinoy Big Brother
''Pinoy Big Brother'', more popularly known by its abbreviated title ''PBB'', is the Philippine version of the '' Big Brother'' reality game show franchise. The word '' Pinoy'' in the title is a colloquial term for the Filipino people. Is a Phi ...
'' housemate Margo Midwinter. The couple called off the engagement in 2013. Agassi was also in a relationship with actress Gwen Garci. Currently, Agassi is dating non-showbiz Sarina Yamamoto.
Filmography
Television
Film
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Agassi, Carlos
1979 births
Living people
Filipino male child actors
Filipino male television actors
Filipino rappers
21st-century Filipino male singers
Filipino male models
Filipino people of Iranian descent
People from Makati
Pop rappers
Male actors from Metro Manila
21st-century Filipino male actors
De La Salle University alumni
Filipino restaurateurs
Businesspeople from Metro Manila
Filipino male film actors